By Lee Tae-hoon
Staff Reporter
A Korean boy, who could barely speak English when he immigrated to the United States at the age of 15, has returned to the country of his birth as the commander of a U.S.
Aegis destroyer for the annual South Korea-U.S. military drill which will continue until March 20. Choi Hee-dong, commander of the guided-missile destroyer USS Chaffee, is participating in the 12-day Key Resolve-Foal Eagle exercise.
The drill is a simulation-driven, defense-oriented combined command-post exercise that evaluates the allied forces’ capability to bring troops and equipment to the peninsula in the event of a contingency.
Having moored the 9,200-ton destroyer in Donghae, Gangwon Province, the Korean-American commander and his crew will visit nursing homes and tourist attractions, including Kangwon Land, in the country’s east coastal region.